


Nearly Witches

by taztaas (ainonoai)



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: 90's-early 00's, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-14
Updated: 2018-06-05
Packaged: 2019-02-13 21:57:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12993363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ainonoai/pseuds/taztaas
Summary: Magic didn't exist. Kravitz knew that. The Raven Queen ritual had just been something cool to do and try out. Well, turns out Kravitz was very wrong in his assumption and now he's gonna need all the help he can get to fix things.





	1. Chapter 1

“You do realize that the Raven Queen isn’t real though?” Taako said, chewing on his gum obnoxiously. He was laying on his stomach on Kravitz’s bed and swinging his legs. The movement was distracting and annoying. Kravitz grit his teeth. Honestly, Taako was the very embodiment of annoying.

“Shut up Taako,” Kravitz muttered, trying hard to concentrate on the spell circle he was drawing on his floor in white chalk. The chalkdust was turning the knees of his black jeans a dirty gray.

“I’m just sayin’” Taako said with another loud smack of his gum. Kravitz bristled, closed his eyes and took a deep breath through his nose. Stay calm, concentrate. He drew another symbol on the wood below him.

“Sometimes I wonder why I hang out with you, all you do is snap at me.” Taako said scathingly. Kravitz just sighed.

“You know, I’ve been wondering about that myself. Since all you do is annoy me.”

“Aww, Krav, You know you like me. I’m so goddamn hot.”

Kravitz snorted, “Sure,” not bothering to look. If Kravitz had been looking he would’ve seen the brief flash of hurt on Taako’s face before it was carefully tamped down. Instead, he heard Taako huff in frustration and pop his gum.

“Lemme see,” Taako said after a moment and came over to crouch down next to Kravitz, the hem of his skirt brushing the chalk. Kravitz swallowed, Taako was too close. Kravitz could smell his shampoo. Fucking coconut. Kravitz risked a sidelong glance at Taako - luckily the blond was busy looking at the circle and didn’t notice.

“You got that rune wrong.”

Kravitz turned slowly to look at Taako fully. “And how, the fuck, do you know that?”  
Taako shifted uncomfortably under Kravitz’s gaze, looking away.

“Check it, see if I’m right.” He said airily, pointing at the sigil. Kravitz checked. He had to begrudgingly admit that Taako was right. Somehow. Not that he was going to say it out loud and give him the satisfaction. Kravitz pulled at his hoodie sleeve and rubbed the mark away, replacing it with the correct one. He didn’t look at Taako as the other moved back to the bed. He didn’t want to see the smug look that was bound to be on the other’s face.

Kravitz finished the last markings with a satisfied flourish. The only thing left was to light the black and purple candles positioned around the circle. Kravitz sat up and patted down his pockets, looking for a lighter that for some reason wasn’t there.

“Fuck. Taako you got a-” He said, turning around just in time to catch Taako’s lighter before it hit him in the face. “Thanks.”

The lighter was glittery, pink and it had a picture of a rainbow unicorn on it. Kravitz snorted. “What?” Taako demanded, sounding irritated.

“Nothing.” Kravitz started lighting the candles. “Why do you have a lighter anyway, you don’t smoke.”

“Because! I need to be prepared in case some cute guy needs a light. It’s a good way to start a conversation.”

Kravitz frowned, mood soured for some reason. “Sure.” He muttered and lit the last candle. 

“Why are you getting pissy again?!” Taako yelled and slammed his hand on the bed in frustration.

“I’m not!” Kravitz yelled back. “Now shut up I’m gonna do the incantation.”

Taako sniffed, indignant, and crossed his arms. “I’m not talking to you anymore.”

“Thank fuck for that,” Kravitz muttered under his breath. Kravitz started reading the spell. He was expecting the lights to flicker, or a wind to pick up or… something. But nothing happened.

He kept going, he refused to give up and submit to Taako’s mocking laughter. Kravitz was deep in concentration, so he didn’t notice the feathered form silently rising from the floor behind him. Taako, who was eye to eye with the figure, certainly noticed. He blanched, frozen in terror, staring at the figure with wide eyes. It was a woman with a raven’s head, too tall to fit in the room so she was bent over Taako. Her eyes were like burning coals and the aura emanating from her chilled Taako to the bone.

“Kra- Kravitz...”

Kravitz ignored Taako in favor of finishing his spell. And in the end, nothing happened. He sighed, bracing himself for laughter and turned around.

Taako was gone.

“Wha- Taako?”

Kravitz called, as if Taako was hiding somewhere, when there was no place in Kravitz’s room where he could be. He couldn’t have left the room either, he would’ve had to walk past Kravitz to do that. Puzzled and alarmed, Kravitz looked around before he noticed something on the floor in front of the bed. He scrambled over on his knees and saw six large, black feathers arranged in a perfect circle. Kravitz reached for one, hand shaking. He lifted it up to his eyes.

“Holy shit…”

It was a raven’s feather. Kravitz had summoned The Raven Queen and she had taken Taako. Kravitz grabbed two fistfuls of his hair and heaved for breath, eyes wide in panic.

“HOLY SHIT!”


	2. Chapter 2

Taako didn’t have any friends because he was a selfish asshole. Kravitz didn’t have any friends because he was a creepy weirdo.

They lived in a small town. Taako was openly gay and unashamed of it, so he got a lot of shit. And he wouldn’t take that shit laying down - Taako was all sharp angles and his nails were even sharper - so he got in a lot of trouble. Also, he was a loudmouth.

Kravitz was mostly left alone but there was talk. People whispered behind his back, intentionally loud enough for him to hear. He had strange interests, he was too quiet - which was apparently unsettling - and worst of all, he was a rich kid. He stayed out of trouble, but got blamed for it often.

Kravitz couldn’t say how he and Taako met. They just… drifted together. They didn’t have much, if any, common interests. They weren’t really friends or anything. They just ended up hanging out, more often than not. Usually at Kravitz’s house.

Kravitz lived alone in one of the largest houses in town, his parents were overseas and they trust him to manage. And he does. His grades are above average.

Kravitz had never been to Taako’s place. He knew the address, and he knew that Taako shared the apartment with a guy called Magnus. He had seen Magnus around at school - big guy, more brawn than brain. Kravitz couldn’t imagine why someone like Taako was shacking up with a guy like that but it was none of his business. Taako never told him and Kravitz never thought to ask.

Kravitz stepped outside. He locked his door and zipped up his black hoodie to fight the chill. He was still shaking, he didn’t want to be in the house anymore. He didn’t have any idea what to do. Magic didn’t actually exist. It shouldn’t have been possible, but fucking _somehow_ , he had managed to summon the goddamn God of Death and she had taken Taako. Kravitz had no idea why, but it was obvious enough that it was his fault. 

He was the one who figured it would be fun to fuck around with dark magicks. He thought it would be cool. Taako had been uncharacteristically opposed to the idea the whole time. Usually he didn’t give a shit about anything.

Taako didn’t say it straight, but now, looking back, Kravitz could see that all the annoying jabs had been in an attempt to divert Kravitz’s attention from the ritual.

Fuck.

And now Taako was gone. Kravitz felt like shit. Taako was probably dead. God of Death and all that. But Kravitz had to be sure. If Taako wasn’t dead, maybe he could be brought back. Somehow. With magic and shit. Another ritual. Something!

Kravitz had no fucking idea what to do. He couldn’t call anyone, no one would believe him. Not that he had anyone to call.

Kravitz started walking. He had to get away from the house where the fucking God of Death appeared and took his… friend? Kravitz shook his head, he didn’t want to think about that right now. He pushed his hands into his pockets and felt Taako’s ridiculous lighter. He squeezed it. For reassurance, or something.

It wasn’t too late but was dark out. Kravitz looked up at the sky, it seemed empty.

“New moon…” He muttered, and briefly wondered if it had anything to do with anything.

He walked under the dirty yellow light of the street lights, cold slowly seeping into his bones. With a start he realized he was heading towards Taako’s place. He stopped.

He should tell Magnus. Kravitz had no idea about Taako’s family, but Magnus might. They deserved to know. Magnus wouldn’t believe him, but at this point Kravitz didn’t care about that. He had to tell _someone_. He kept walking, now with a goal in mind.

Taako’s place was a dingy two-story apartment building. Kravitz took the stairs to the second floor and knocked at the correct door. He heard someone rushing to the door, and when Magnus opened it, Kravitz could see his face falling. He had been expecting Taako, obviously. 

“Ummm… Hi?” Magnus said, and Kravitz swallowed audibly. He looked away, clenching his fists in his pockets.

“You uh- You don’t know me, probably, sorry,” Kravitz babbled, before he caught himself. “I’m Kravitz and-”

“Oh, you’re Taako’s boyfriend!” Magnus said with an excited grin. Kravitz blinked. Then he reeled. He felt like his legs were going to give out.

“Wha- What? No!”

“Really?” Magnus squinted at him “He talks about you a lot.”

“No, really!" Kravitz waved his hands in front of him, as if dismissing the notion.Taako _talked_ about him? "We aren’t- aren’t dating.” They weren't even  _friends._

“Oh”, Magnus said simply. “Where’s Taako anyway?” Kravitz froze.

“Yeah… about that…” He said unsurely. Suddenly suspicious, Magnus straightened in front of him and fuck, he was a really big guy.

“Where is he?”

“I don’t know-” Kravitz breathed out, “I don’t fucking-”

“You better start talking, buddy.” Magnus almost _growled_ , and Kravitz felt very much threatened.

“You won’t believe me.”

“Try me.”

Kravitz closed his eyes. He took a deep breath. “The Raven Queen took him.”

Silence. Kravitz opened his eyes to see Magnus’ reaction, but there wasn’t any. Kravitz was starting to wonder if he should duck or run away. He braced himself for Magnus' answer.

“I don’t believe you.” Magnus said finally.

“I know! I know it sounds impossible, and it is! But... Taako was at my place and I was doing this ritual-”

“You were doing what?”

“Fuck, it’s like magic okay? You draw some shit, you light some candles and say some shit. It _wasn’t supposed to work_. Magic isn’t real!” Kravitz hurried to explain, talking with his hands as much as with his mouth. “But when I was done and I turned around, Taako was fucking gone and there were raven feathers on the floor! The Raven Queen must’ve come and-”

“Move.” Magnus said, interrupting Kravitz's tirade.

“Huh?”

“Move.” Magnus repeated, and Kravitz took a step back. Magnus stepped out, pulling his jacket on and locked the door. “Come on,” he said and started walking. Kravitz followed.

“Where are we going?”

“I have no fucking idea what’s going on, and apparently you don’t either, but my friend is gone and we gotta do something.”

“You have- You have an idea?” Kravitz hardly dared to hope, that Magnus fucking Burnsides had just had an goddamn epiphany.

 “Well… sorta.” Magnus said, scratching at his chin. “I know this guy, he’s like, a priest or something.”

 “A priest?” Kravitz deflated. Magnus shrugged.

 “Hey, I don’t know but I’ve seen enough movies where you kick demon ass with holy water and stuff. So I think this is our best bet.”

 Kravitz couldn’t believe that he was getting into Magnus Burnsides’ dirty pick-up truck. He couldn’t believe he was gonna meet a priest and tell him that he had performed a dark ritual in his bedroom.

 But it wasn’t like he had a choice. And Kravitz wanted to- no, he _needed_ to get Taako back, and he and Magnus, they were on the same side here. The unicorn lighter felt heavy in Kravitz's pocket.


	3. Chapter 3

There was a knock on Merle’s door. He stopped watering the ficus he was tending to and glanced at the clock on his living room wall. It wasn’t too late, but he wasn’t expecting any visitors. He set down the watering can he was using. More knocking. Impatient asshole, Merle thought, but called “Just a second!” anyway.

He made his way to the door and opened it. Standing on his doorstep were Magnus Burnsides and a frazzled looking young guy with too much eyeliner. Merle raised an eyebrow. Magnus, true to his nature, grinned and waved.

“Hey Merle!”

“Hello Magnus. Isn’t it a bit late for a surprise visit?” Merle asked, narrowing his eyes in suspicion. “And who’s this?” He stared at Kravitz.

“This is Kravitz, Taako’s bo-” Kravitz smacked Magnus in the arm, full power. Magnus didn’t even flinch. “Friend. Taako’s friend.” Magnus finished with a smile.

“We’re not friends.” Kravitz muttered under his breath, crossing his arms and looking away. Magnus snorted and punched him lightly in the arm.

“Yeah, because not-friends are totally down for friday night satanic rituals am I right?”

Kravitz didn’t have anything to say to that. He rubbed at his arm where Magnus punched him, it felt like it might bruise. And it wasn’t a _satanic_ ritual.

Merle stepped back to let the boys in and lead the way inside his house. Following Merle and Magnus inside, Kravitz couldn’t help but to notice that Merle had a lot of plants. Like, _a lot._ His thoughts must’ve somehow shown on his face because Magnus elbowed him in the side, not very subtly, and whispered “Don’t ask him about the plants,” also not very subtly. Kravitz grunted in response. He wondered if Magnus liked to cover all of his friends in bruises. Not that they were friends. Acquaintances, more like. If even that.

They ended up in the living room and sat down on the ugliest couch Kravitz had ever seen. Brown and covered in a palm-tree print. It was an insult to anyone’s eyesight. Kravitz smiled briefly, thinking what colorful words Taako might use to describe the couch, but sobered quickly, remembering the current situation.

Merle asked if they wanted some tea or something, and Magnus enthusiastically agreed for the both of them before Kravitz had time to decline. He sighed and leaned back, relaxing into the horrible couch, his hand going to his pocket to fiddle with Taako’s lighter on its own accord. Magnus twiddled his thumbs in his lap and coughed awkwardly, trying to break the silence. Kravitz ignored him. He was here to save Taako, not make friends with Magnus fucking Burnsides.

Merle emerged with the tea, setting two mugs on the coffee table in front of the boys. Magnus grabbed his ‘PLANT DADDY’ mug with a grimace and took a sip. Merle’s mug had a picture of a succulent on it with the text ‘give me the succ’ under it. Kravitz carefully covered his cup with his hands to avoid seeing what was on it. He took a sip, it tasted herbal and not too bad actually.

“So…” Merle said, looking at Magnus and Kravitz meaningfully.

“So.” Magnus echoed, side-eyeing Kravitz, who swallowed his tea and wished he didn’t have to be here having this conversation. But this whole situation was his fault so he had to do it.

“So, uh,” Kravitz started awkwardly, holding his cup up to his mouth to hide behind it.

“Magnus here told me you’re a priest? Sir?” He said and looked at Merle over the rim of his mug. Merle snorted into his tea and took a sip before answering.

“That’s bullshit. I’m not a priest. And don’t ‘sir’ me. Merle’s fine.”

Magnus choked on his tea and sputtered, “You told me you were religious!”

“I’m a cleric of Pan, boy, that’s different.” Merle said with a sigh. “But I’ll help you kids if I can. What’s the problem?”

“Well,” Magnus said and turned to look at Kravitz. “Krav here came over-”

“Don’t call me that.” Kravitz said immediately, stiffening. Krav is what Taako called- what Taako _calls_ him. He refused to use past tense in referring to Taako. He didn’t want anyone else using it, especially now that Taako was…

Magnus coughed. “Like I was saying, Krav _itz_ here showed up at me and Taako’s apartment tonight, saying that Taako was…” He furrowed his brows. “Gone.”

Merle blinked. “Gone?”

“Yeah, uh,” Magnus said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. “You should tell him, Kravitz.” He said, surprisingly gently and Kravitz took a deep fortifying breath before speaking. “The Raven Queen took Taako.”

Merle set his tea down on the table. “Unbelievable.”

Kravitz frowned. He knew this wasn’t going to be easy. He didn’t think that Magnus was going to believe him, and he was still surprised that he did. But an actual adult with a religious background? No fucking way.

“Unbelievable.” Merle said again, rubbing his fingers to his temple. He suddenly stood up.

“I’m feeling like I’m gonna need something stronger than tea for this conversation. You boys want any?”

Kravitz blinked. “Uh, we’re minors, sir.”

“Pah,” Merle said with a dismissive wave and disappeared into the kitchen. Kravitz turned to look at Magnus, who had turned towards Kravitz. Kravitz lifted a questioning brow at Magnus, who just shook his head and shrugged. Magnus downed the rest of his tea. Kravitz followed suit, just to have something to do.

Merle returned with a glass and an uncorked bottle of greenish liquid. Kravitz didn’t even want to know what was in it. Merle poured some into his glass (the consistency was suspiciously gooey) and slammed it back like a shot. Kravitz and Magnus blinked simultaneously. Merle pounded his sturdy chest with a fist and burped. “Okay, hit me.”

Kravitz blinked again, and for some reason, looked to Magnus for reassurance. He grinned and gave Kravitz a thumbs up. Kravitz grinned back, shakily but still. Magnus had believed him, and was helping him. It felt good, to be trusted. Kravitz sighed, and started recounting his tale.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit of a filler chapter, sorry about that.  
> Credit for the mug designs go to Adam Ellis who has them in t-shirt form https://www.teepublic.com/t-shirts/adam-ellis


	4. Chapter 4

“Okay,” Merle sighed and slapped his hands to thighs, startling both Kravitz and Magnus. “Okay,” he repeated, “Here’s what I’m thinking.” Merle stood up from his seat and started pacing back and forth, stroking his beard thoughtfully as he walked.

“I’m not too familiar with the lore, but The Raven Queen doesn’t kill people, right?” He looked at Kravitz for an answer, and so did Magnus.

“Right,” Kravitz said, nodding. She was more like a shepherd, overlooking the sea of souls. She didn’t kill people and take their souls, she took care of them after they passed.

“So,” Merle snapped his fingers, “Taako is probably alive, maybe. Somewhere. We just need to find out where he is and figure out a way to get him back.” He stopped pacing and turned to the boys sitting on his couch, hands on his hips. “Right?”

“Right.” Kravitz and Magnus answered, nodding in tandem.

“Okay.” Merle rubbed his hands over his face. “We’re gonna need supplies for this. You got anything of Taako’s?” He asked, looking back and forth between Kravitz and Magnus. Kravitz hesitantly dug the unicorn lighter out of his pocket, presenting it to Merle, who raised an eyebrow but nodded. “That’ll do. Have it with you tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” Kravitz asked, sitting up straighter on the couch in alarm.

“Yeah, tomorrow. It’s late, and I’m an old man. I need my beauty sleep.” He frowned at Kravitz. “It’s not going to make any difference if we do it today or tomorrow. And I need time to gather up some stuff.”

“What are we going to do?” Magnus asked.

“Oh, we’re going to do a scrying.”

“A what?”

“Scrying is… looking into a medium and detecting messages or visions.” Kravitz explained. Merle snorted, “Of course the goth boy knows all about the occult.” Kravitz glared at him.

“Okay!” Magnus said, smiling. Then, “What is a medium?”

Kravitz sighed, “It can be anything, like a crystal or a mirror...”

“Yeah,” Merle said, “But we’re going to use water. I have a scrying bowl somewhere in here. Don’t ask why. But like I said, tomorrow. Come back here around noon, I should have everything we need by then.”

“Thanks, Merle,” Magnus said, standing up. He turned to Kravitz. “I can give you a ride home.” Kravitz blinked, “Uh, thank you.”

Kravitz didn't know what he had been thinking, that this could’ve been resolved right away? He had hoped. But he guessed tomorrow would be better than never, even if the wait was killing him. He followed Magnus to the door, eyes downcast. Merle stopped him before he could step out, grabbing his shoulder. “Hey, kid, one question.”

Kravitz turned to face Merle, who was looking at him seriously. 

“I just wanna know how. How did you get Taako to agree to do the ritual with you?”

Kravitz blinked again, feeling dumb. “Uh, well. I did the ritual myself. Taako didn’t really have a part-”

Merle frowned. “He didn’t say anything to you?”

“Like what?” 

“He never told you?

“Told me what?!” Kravitz asked, incredulous, he was honestly feeling so attacked right now, not that he was expecting to have a good time.

“About his sister.” Merle said, and Kravitz froze. Sister? What sister? Taako had  _ a sister? _

He stared at Merle, eyes wide and felt his stomach drop down to his knees. He had thought… He had thought that he and Taako had an understanding or something, that they had had a connection. Had it all been a lie? Why would Taako keep something this big from him?

“Okay, so you didn’t have any idea,” Merle sighed, seeing Kravitz’s lost expression.

“Well, it isn’t really my place to tell but… Taako had a twin sister. There was an accident.”

Kravitz swallowed. “An accident?”

“Yeah, the twins lived with their aunt, who was a witch.” Merle said and Kravitz barked a laugh.

“That’s ridiculous, magic doesn’t exist.” Kravitz said automatically, and realized how dumb he sounded right after. Yeah no, magic doesn’t exist but he just accidentally summoned the God of Death. Sure.

Merle glared at him, thinking precisely what Kravitz was thinking.

“ _ Obviously. _ Anyway, she was a witch. She taught the twins everything she knew. Taako and Lup, that’s his sister’s name, we’re playing around with magic and something went wrong. She was lost, just… gone. No one knows what happened. Taako was too young to know and remember what they were doing. He’s been avoiding magic ever since. Well, until now.”

Kravitz bid Merle goodbye in a daze, and somehow he managed to get into Magnus’ car, though he didn’t remember walking there. He sat down, and Magnus looked at him worriedly before starting the car and pulling out of Merle’s driveway.

“You okay Kravitz?” Magnus eventually asked, after sending numerous concerned glances at Kravitz.

“Taako had a sister.” Kravitz blurted out, still in shock.

“Oh. Yeah. That.” Magnus said with grimace.

“You knew?” Kravitz asked, and met Magnus’ eye for the first time since they left Merle’s. Magnus quickly turned his eyes to the road ahead, rubbing at his neck, obviously feeling uneasy.

“Well, we’ve been friends for a long time. It eventually came up. Taako doesn’t really tell people though.” Magnus said carefully, trying to soften the blow. Kravitz looked down at his hands on his lap. His nailpolish was chipping, and Taako wasn’t here to treat him a fresh coat. It was purple instead of the usual black, Taako had insisted.

“I feel like… Like I never really even knew Taako.” Kravitz said quietly and clenched his fists to hide his nails in his palms.

“I’m sure that’s not true.” Magnus said with a frown. Kravitz said nothing. Suddenly Magnus tapped his hand at the steering wheel, and turned to Kravitz with a grin.

“I’ll quiz you! About Taako. To pass the time?”

Kravitz, startled and caught off guard, nodded. “Okay, sure.”

“Well, what’s his favorite color?”

“Pink.”

“Favorite band?”

“Backstreet Boys or Spice Girls, depending on the day.”

Magnus grinned, and Kravitz felt a smile creeping onto his own face. They kept it up for a while. Taako’s favorite gum flavor was Tutti frutti, his favorite character from One Tree Hill was Lucas, he wanted sparkling white platform sneakers for his birthday, and so on. 

Eventually Kravitz started to feel like he actually knew Taako, after all. Magnus was a really good person, Kravitz was thankful for his company, and for being Taako’s friend.

“Backstreet’s back,” Magnus sang with an expectant grin and a sideways glance at Kravitz.

“Alright,” Kravitz chorused with a small smile, making Magnus laugh. The first time Kravitz heard the lyrics from Taako’s mouth, he neglected to answer and Taako had pronounced that Kravitz’s was dead to him. Now he knew better.

Kravitz gave Magnus directions to his house, since he was unfamiliar with the area. Eventually they pulled to a stop in front of Kravitz’s place.

“Holy shit your house is huge!” Magnus exclaimed and peered at the dark windows “Your parents asleep already?”

“Uh no, or I don’t know. They don’t live here with me.” Kravitz said, feeling sheepish and stuck his hands into his pockets.

“You live alone?”   


“Yeah.”   


“That sucks.”

Kravitz started because yeah, it kinda did. He hadn’t really thought about it but yeah, it did suck, a lot in fact. Taako had called it freedom, lounging on the huge modular sofa of the living room in his dirty sneakers, making a mess of the kitchen and leaving his outerwear on the floor or where ever he felt  like taking them off instead of hanging them up.

But now that Taako was gone, Kravitz was going to be all alone, every day, in his huge, cold and empty house.

Kravitz opened the car door and turned to Magnus before stepping out.

“Thanks for the ride and… everything, Magnus. You’re a good-”  _ Friend? _

“A good guy.”

“No problem dude, see you tomorrow? I’ll come and pick you up, around eleven-ish?”

“Thanks. Good night, Magnus.”

“Night!”

Kravitz slammed the car door closed and waved at Magnus as he drove away.

“A sister, huh.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter, we finally get to see some magic~ *wiggles fingers*


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp, this one took a while, sorry about that. I wasn't feeling it.  
> But check out this **[awesome fanart](https://hugbugbear.tumblr.com/post/169821867253/have-a-quickly-done-fanart-of-taztaass)** for this story that my friend hugbugbear made!! My first ever fanart I'm crying a little.

On Saturday morning, Kravitz opened his eyes and saw stars. Well, the plastic, glow-in-the-dark ones he’d stuck to his bedroom ceiling as a kid, and then forgot all about. Until Taako had spotted them the first time he came over and laughed. He couldn’t take them down after that.

He sighed and rubbed his hands over his face. He didn’t feel like getting up. He’d forgotten to close his blinds in the evening so the gray light of the morning was spilling into his room, making everything even more dreary. It suited his mood if nothing else.

He turned to his side to look at his alarm clock. It was 9:30, still a lot of time before Magnus was going to come pick him up. He turned back onto his back, staring at the ceiling again. So. Taako knew--  _ knows  _ magic.  _ Actual _ magic. That certainly explained why he could tell that one of the runes was wrong. And why Taako had been so against the ritual, in his usual, roundabout way but still. Fuck.

Kravitz wished, not for the first time (if he was being honest with himself) that he and Taako had had the kind of relationship where you tell each other shit. Important shit. But they weren’t that kind of people. Or maybe they just were afraid to try. And now it was too late. Maybe. Probably. Hopefully not.

“Fuck,” he mumbled and covered his eyes with his palm again. If Taako would have just told him, given it to him straight that there was no way he was going to let him do a dark magic ritual. Or if he had just  _ fucking asked  _ Taako what was wrong instead of just presuming he was being shitty on purpose and getting pissed at him. In a way, they were both to blame but it was still  _ Taako _ who had been taken away by the God of Death and  _ that _ was Kravitz’s fault. 

Kravitz bit his lip in frustration. He was never going to forgive himself if he didn't get Taako back. Maybe he was selfish, but how was he supposed to live without--

He sat up. Yeah, no, not going there. Nope. He threw his blanket aside and padded to the bathroom, his footsteps echoing in the empty house. Empty and too quiet. He shivered involuntarily. He glared at Taako’s purple spare towel hanging on one of the hooks and got rid of his clothes quickly, stepping into the shower.

After he’d finished his business in the bathroom he returned to his room to rifle through his closet. He pulled on his socks, underwear, and dark jeans. He hesitated for a bit before grabbing his My Chemical Romance t-shirt. Taako used to mock him for it but he’d heard him humming Welcome To The Black Parade before. He grabbed it, maybe a more briskly than necessary and pulled it over his head. He decided to wear a hoodie over it because it was still cold outside. He zipped it up halfway and went downstairs to drink a cup of coffee and... eat cereal, he supposed. Since Taako wasn’t there to take advantage of his high-end kitchen. He remembered Taako’s lighter just as he was leaving his room and went back to search through the pile of clothes he’d worn yesterday. He found it and stuck it in his pocket.

He munched on his bland breakfast while staring at the TV. There wasn’t really anything interesting on so he wasn’t paying attention. He just wanted some background noise. So, Taako had a sister. A twin. That had been unexpected. Or maybe not. Taako was kind of strange and definitely the kind to hide some deep dark secret. Such as magic powers. And a twin. The more Kravitz thought about it the more sense it seemed to make. Taako just… was like that. Unique and sort of amazing even when he was annoying, and not like anyone else Kravitz had ever met.

He realized with a start that he was smiling. But he decided to allow himself that. Because he was going to get Taako back, no matter what it took. And he had help.

As if summoned, he heard a car horn sound come from outside and he glanced at the clock to see that it was about five minutes before eleven. He left his dirty dishes in the living room because he could but turned off the TV. He stepped into his shoes at the door and grabbed his keys. He locked the door and zipped his hoodie all the way up because it was fucking freezing and jogged to the car.

“Morning,” Kravitz said, but Magnus just nodded and yawned, grinning sheepishly at Kravitz who smiled back. The drive to Merle’s house was quiet because Magnus seemed really tired, yawning every five minutes or so. Eventually, they arrived at their destination. Kravitz hung back to let Magnus knock on the door. There was no response and they shared a look before Magnus shrugged and walked in since the door wasn’t locked.

The house smelled weird. Well, weirder than the day before. Magnus made a face and yelled “Merle?”

There was a crash and a curse from the direction of the kitchen before Merle appeared in front of them.

“Good timing. Magnus, come and grab this one bowl for me,” he said, rubbing his lower back. “Goddamn heavy-ass piece of shit,” he muttered and returned to the kitchen with Magnus following. Kravitz went to sit in the living room.

The furniture had been moved so that there was more free space around the coffee table, which was covered with a deep purple fabric and some assorted crystals and herbs. A spell circle was drawn on white on the cloth. A stick of incense was burning in the corner of the room, the source of the smell. Magnus appeared with a huge, heavy-looking black bowl and he set it down on a clear spot, in the middle of the circle, on the coffee table. Merle was right behind him with a pitcher of water that he poured into the bowl.

Kravitz and Magnus watched as Merle arranged the crystals and herbs around the circle in some kind of pattern he seemed to know. He pointed at a spot and told Kravitz to set Taako’s lighter there but he hesitated for a second. The lighter was something of Taako’s and he felt an instinctual need to hold on to it. He immediately felt foolish for protecting an  _ object  _ when there was a chance it could help them find out what happened to Taako.

“You,” Merle said and pointed at Kravitz before pointing at the floor in front of the table. “Sit here, you need to see the water.”

“Oh, can I see too?” Magnus asked, obviously excited to take part in a magical ritual despite his previous notions of them. Merle shrugged, “Sure,” and went to pick up an old book from his bookshelf.

“Alright,” he said and leafed through the book before he found what he was looking for. “I’m gonna read the incantation, and you kids are gonna stare into the water and pay  _ attention.  _ This is probably our only shot, these crystals aren’t easy to find.”

“Um, what should we expect?” Kravitz asked, feeling nervous and clutching the fabric of his pants in his fists. He knew about scrying but it was only theory. He had no idea what was actually going to happen.

“There’ll be a picture in the water. A vision, if ya will. Sound too, maybe. It should show us Taako since we have something of his here,” he indicated the lighter. “But other than that, I dunno. We’ll see. Hopefully, it will be helpful.”

Kravitz swallowed a lump in his throat. “Alright.” Magnus nodded. Merle started one of his hands out to hold it over the water and began to read from his book. It sounded like gibberish, and Magnus threw a quick look at Kravitz who just shook his head.

The room got darker and colder as Merle kept speaking. Kravitz grit his teeth and stared hard at the water in front of him. First, there was sound, coming from… somewhere. Whispering. It got louder and clearer as Merle kept reading, and Kravitz could make out the words.

_ One to live, one to die, together again at an opportune time _

The words repeated on a loop, but Kravitz had no time to think about them because a picture appeared on the surface of the water. He heard Magnus gasp beside him. Merle kept reading aloud.

It was Taako and someone who looked just like him, laying in a bird’s nest, messily made from twigs and dry leaves. It was Taako and his sister. They were curled up, facing each other, their little fingers locked in a childish promise. They were still, possibly sleeping. The image flickered, like a TV with bad reception, and the chant kept getting louder and louder, the words merging together, spoken with haste.

_ Onetoliveonetodietogetheragainatanopportunetime _

Kravitz kept looking, ignoring the words when they got loud enough to hurt his ears. The image didn’t change but the flickering intensified until the chant reached its zenith.

_ ONETOLIVEONETODIETOGETHERAGAINATANOPPORTUNETIME _

The twins’ eyes snapped open. Their eyes inhuman, birdlike, but the image was seen for only a fraction of a second before the bowl suddenly split neatly in half. Merle cursed and stopped reading. Magnus scrambled back but Kravitz could only stare. The water, impossibly, held its shape for a second before it fell and poured all over the table and floor. Kravitz hastily grabbed Taako’s lighter before it could get wet.

The three of them stared at each other in silence, still reeling from what they’d just witnessed.

“Shit,” Magnus said, running a shaking hand through his hair. Kravitz let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. Merle slammed his book closed.

“Well,” he said. “Now we have something, but there’s nothing more I can do for you. You two need to do some research. I think a trip to the library is in order.”

“Seriously?” Magnus croaked, still shaken. Kravitz could only stare dumbly at the broken scrying bowl in front of him.

“Seriously,” Merle said, and Kravitz looked up to see him look at him meaningfully.

“Go to the library. Ask for Lucretia. She’ll lend you boys a hand.”


	6. Interlude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had estimated this fic to be seven chapters long but that's turning out to be a damn lie so we're back to the question mark :D

_ A few months ago _

Barry couldn’t get home fast enough. He yanked the front door open and kicked off his shoes in the mudroom, loud enough to alert his mother.

“Oh, Barry you’re back!” she called from somewhere in the house. “Are you hungry?”

“No thanks mom, already ate,” he said in a rush as he ran upstairs to his room, taking the steps two at a time, clutching his book bag to his chest. He shouldered his way inside, kicked the door shut and collapsed against it, sliding slowly to the floor.

“Finally,” Barry breathed as he caught his breath and wiped the sweat off his forehead. He was going to owe Lucas big time for this, and that, if any, was a nightmarish scenario but Lucas had been the only person Barry could ask. He was pretty sure that owing the twins anything would end up with him at least one limb short.

At the latest meeting of the Occult club they had discussed spiritism, and it had turned out that he, the club president was the only one who had never actually used an Ouija board so… here he was. Indebted to Lucas Miller.

At least Lucas’ board actually worked. At least allegedly. Barry had his suspicions that Lucas’ communing with the spirit of his dead mother was nothing more than a grief-induced hallucination but whatever. He’d heard weirder. And it wasn’t like he was any better, as excited to use it as he was. Edward and Lydia had also claimed success when they had discussed the topic at their club meeting, but Barry knew better than to trust those two.

Barry pulled the board out of his bag and looked at it. It was nothing special, a very basic-looking Ouija board with the characters of the alphabet in the middle and the numbers from zero to nine under them. The words  _ YES _ and  _ NO _ were on the upper corners and  _ GOOD BYE _ was at the bottom. Both the board and planchette were made of wood and actually looked old, not that it confirmed the authenticity of the item or anything.

He swallowed, a little nervous, small amount of dread gathering at the pit of his stomach. But he had to do this. He sighed. “Okay.”

Barry had actually been planning to use the board later. after he had gathered some supplies. He knew that he was supposed to have incense and sage, in addition to the candles he already had but what would be the harm in trying it out now? Barry looked at his window and the rising full moon stared back at him.

“Would fit the mood,” he muttered and shrugged off the strap of his bag. He stood up and went to gather the candles he had bought.

He cleared a spot on his floor, rolled his rug out of the way (fire hazard…) and set the candles down in a half-circle formation, lighting them with a matchbook. He sat down and placed the board on the floor in front of him and the planchette on top. He stared at his set-up and felt his face heat. This was so silly. But he really wanted to try...

Barry shook his head to compose himself. The atmosphere in his room felt heavy somehow, dark and ominous with just light from the candles and the moon. He remembered all the books saying that one shouldn’t try to contact anything alone, but whatever. Lucas had done it by himself too. What could possibly happen?

Barry reached for the planchette, setting his fingers on it gently, not pressing down. He cleared his throat.

“So uhh, is there anybody here with me? Any spirits?”

At first, nothing happened and Barry had a moment of feeling like the world’s biggest moron. Then, the planchette started to move. It slid across the board, agonizingly slow, to  _ YES. _

Barry blinked. “Holy shit,” he breathed, keeping quiet so as not to disturb the spirit or his mother downstairs.

“Um, how many of you are there?”

Again a pause, then a slow movement towards the numbers, ending up at the number  _ 1. _ Barry realized he was shaking slightly. He swallowed, but his mouth was as dry as the desert as realized how fucking bad this could turn out. What if he was talking to a demon? There might even be more than one spirit in the room, all the books he had read had said not to trust anything the board tells you.

“Are you a good spirit?”

The planchette didn’t move. Maybe the spirit didn’t want to answer? Or it didn’t know? Barry started to panic, what if he had insulted the actual supernatural being he had contacted?

“What’s your name?” Barry asked, voice trembling. He hoped the question was easy enough and thus safe _. _ The planchette immediately started to slide on the board, faster than before. 

Barry followed the movement of the planchette as it quickly slid over the letters, the spirit pausing to indicate each character.

_ L-U-P _


End file.
